CSS 305 – Interdisciplinary Information Technology:
Computer
Animations
General Information
Instructor:
In
Class Quiz: First the good news: there
is no exam in this class! Yeah! Now the bad news, there are 4-6 in-class pop
quiz. There will be no advanced warnings given. The quiz will always be given
at the end of classes, last about 30 minutes, each weigh about 3-5%. Now, more
good news, the quiz will be open book, open computer, open anything you want to
open. The quiz will typically consist of two parts: written part, and practical
part. For example:
Written:
describe two attributes in a modern 3D application project file system.
e.g.
Your answer: scene files, texture files,
etc.
Practical:
create a project using our 3D application system that utilizes the above
attributes, save the project and submit the entire project so that I can grade
it.
e.g.
Your answer: you will create a Maya
scene, with a sphere, with a file texture mapped. Save the project, zip the
project and submit it electronically.
You see, this is what this class is all about: learn
some theory about computer animation, understand why they are so, and practice
simple implementation of the theory. We can pretend it is real hard work, and
secretly enjoy the learning process! J
No
Late Assignments: There will be no late assignments accepted, period. Let
me put this in another way, there will be
no late assignments accepted, period. This applies to every single project.
Pay attention to the deadline on the assignments (including the time), there
will be no late assignments accepted. Refer to the schedule provided, Projects
are always due at the beginning of the lecture on the days they are due. We
will start examine solutions to the projects immediately after the projects are
due. So, you see, there are no possibilities for late assignments. Let me
explain this again, there will be no late assignments accepted. I am actually a
reasonable person, come talk to me about exceptional circumstances.
Late
to classes: It does not bother me, just don’t disturb anyone. On
the days the projects are due, the due time for hardcopy is the beginning of
class time. So, you may wish to make sure you are on time for those classes. If
you want to leave early, it would be very nice if you could give me advance
warning. If that’s too much trouble, or if you forgot, don’t worry, just don’t
disturb anyone and leave quietly.
Commitments
and such: I am usually very easy
going. I like relaxed classrooms for learning and will try my best to create
such an environment. Please do not confuse relax environment with relax
requirements. I work very hard, and expect students to work as hard. The software
we will be using in this class is highly sophisticated applications designed
for professionals. This is really cool, for we have the opportunity to
experience with the state of the arts in animation creation. This is not so
cool because the initial learning curve of the application is very steep.
Please try to dedicate time (especially in the beginning of the quarter) to
learn the software so that you can use it to create cool stuff later on in the
quarter. I will put in my very best to try to make this class a worthwhile
learning experience for you. BUT, remember, you are the only that can do the
actually learning,
Collaboration: You are expected to work with one partner on each
project. Due to the complexity and sheer amount of work involved, collaboration
in media content creation is every bit as important as the actual technical
contents themselves. This is saying, it is usually not good enough that you are very good at what you are doing you must know how to work with others.
Having said this, if you insist on working alone, you can. But you must work on
the exact same project. If, for some reasons, 3 of you wish to be in the same
group, please come talk to me, I will set up extra work for your group in each
project.
Since
all projects involve computer animation creation based on technical
specifications, you are free to create any media content, as long as your
content satisfies the technical specifications. This is great! Because you are
free to be creative, and please do, do so! After every project is graded, I
will demonstrate those that are especially creative in class to inspire the
rest of us.
WATCH
OUT! Because all of us are free to be creative, I do expect all projects to look different! You are welcome to discuss
the projects with fellow students, provided you do not exchange designs, or
copy scene files. You may always discuss any problem with me. You are expected
to subscribe to the highest standards of honesty. Failure to do this
constitutes plagiarism. Plagiarism includes copying projects in part or in
total, verbal dissemination of detailed designs, and results, or using
solutions from other students, solution sets, other textbooks, etc. without
crediting these sources by name. Plagiarism will not be tolerated in this
class, any more than it would be in the “real world”. Any student guilty of
plagiarism will be subject to disciplinary action. In the “real world”, you are
responsible for the security of your intellectual properties. In our case, you
are responsible for the security of your source scene files (either on public
hard disk, or on printed copies). Remember to erase your work from all public
hard disks, and to dispose the hard copies of your source with care. If someone
did not break any law, and has identical solution as yours, you are a suspect
of plagiarism.